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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 116 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  2. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  3. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  4. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  5. How do you ________________ your surname?
  6. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  7. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  10. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  11. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  12. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  13. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  14. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  15. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  16. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  17. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  18. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  19. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  20. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  23. He is an ace ________________.
  24. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. chair — a professorship
  2. present — there
  3. spring — of water
  4. spell — a short time
  5. spell — letters
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. present — the time now
  8. spring — the season
  9. mine — for digging
  10. spell — magic
  11. craft — boats
  12. present — a gift
  13. lie — to recline
  14. craft — a skill
  15. craft — a handicraft
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. mine — an explosive
  19. chair — a leader
  20. chair — to sit on
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. spring — a coil
  23. pitcher — in baseball
  24. lie — an untruth

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com